1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to medical endoscopes and, more particularly, to a resectoscope with an improved guide block and electrical plug connection.
2. Prior Art
Generally, resectoscopes comprise a hollow sheath, a working element, a telescope and an electrode. The working element generally has a guide block that can slide or move, such as by a rack and pinion mechanism or spring, to move the electrode relative to the telescope. The guide block generally has a hole or connector for receiving a portion of the electrode and another hole for receiving an electric plug. The electric plug supplies electricity to the electrode for resection or the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,610 to Kubota shows one type of guide block or movable member and an extending connecting part. U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,538 shows a slide portion with a receptacle or channel for receiving the plug of an electrical lead (not shown). However, problems exist with devices in the prior art.
During an operation on a patient, the doctor or operator must feel confident and secure with his instrument. In the past, various different manufactures of medical instruments produced different designs of instruments having electric cords connected at various different locations on their individual instruments. Doctors who were educated or trained on a certain type of instrument feel uncomfortable in changing to other types or makes of the same instrument merely because of the change in orientation of the electrical wire such as in a resectoscope. Hence, a user who is comfortable with a resectoscope such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,610, with a connector on the top of the resectoscope, would feel uncomfortable using the resectoscope shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,538, merely because the electric wire for the resectoscope extends downward rather than upward. In addition, the resectoscope shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,538 would probably be uncomfortable for a left handed doctor. This lack of confidence and thus increase the risk to a patient from such increased time.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide a disconnectable electric plug for use with a medical endoscope that can be oriented in different orientations to accommodate different operators.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a resectoscope that can accept an electrical plug in several different orientations including on different sides of the resectoscope.